Why Do Some E-Cycling Drop-Off Spots Cost Money?

WASHINGTON-- Our newsroom has received a number of calls and e-mails asking why if the State Department of Ecology is promoting free e-cycling, some people are being asked to pay anywhere from $5-15.

We hopped online to the Department of Ecology's website. It turns out stores like Staples and Office Depot charge you money for what's called a drop-off box; you buy a box and can fill it with electronic recyclables. We talked to Office Depot, and they tell us they charge the money for shipping and the state's new ecology law does not affect them. We also contacted the Ecology Department, who cleared up any confusion.

"The e-cycle Washington program is a legislatively mandated program that requires manufacturers to provide free recycling for computers, monitors and t.v.'s to citizens of Washington," says Miles Kuntz, Program Manager of the Electronic Products Recycling Program in Washington. "The other programs you're talking about--the Best Buys, Staples, those are privately run programs."

The website simply lists every e-cycling drop-off spot offered in various counties; it does not just list the free drop-off sites.